In January 2021, the Bob’s Discount Furniture Playroom Artisan Sectional in blue I purchased arrived, and I loved it.
It was large, it had a sleeper section, and tons of pillows. Immediately (within a few days) it began pilling severely, but I purchased a “fabric shaver,” which I had to use every second day to maintain the fabric. In addition, I purchased an upholstery cleaning machine to keep the fabric pristine.
Here’s how it looked after delivery:
Between January 21st and May 4th, the Bob’s Discount Furniture Playroom Artisan Sectional seemed like a great couch. However, on the later date, we made the critical error of opening the sleeper sectional for sleeping — and it has never retracted:
Immediately thereafter, I contacted Bob’s Discount Furniture to explain that a stuck arm meant the sleeper section of the Playroom Artisan Sectional would not return to the proper position — making it impossible to use or clean the floor. Bob’s Discount Furniture scheduled what sounded like a repair visit under warranty one week later.
During the intervening week, the sofa section underneath which the sectional was stored collapsed; it looked as if it was not supported by anything other than the moveable sleeper section.
On May 13th, a Bob’s employee arrived to (I thought) fix the stuck arm. Instead, he stood in the doorway and took photographs from very far away and darted back out the door without saying a word. I flagged him down and asked what was happening, and he told me someone from Bob’s would contact me.
Nobody contacted me, and I eventually tweeted to Bob’s Discount Furniture to ask about the in-warranty defective sofa. A representative quickly called me (in less than an hour) and curtly said that because I did not purchase “Goof Proof” (reviews indicate it’s a scam) that my “only option [was] to repurchase the item.”
I asked if I could pay for repairs and she reiterated “your only option is to repurchase the item.” On Twitter, I asked if I could speak with another customer service agent, and after some time, another one contacted me and said “we stand by our technicians and do not offer second opinions.” She also said that Goof Proof was not relevant.
From there, I found a number of identical issues with consumers across several states. Bob’s is known for not honoring their warranties, and for furniture that fails within the first few weeks. This sectional is unwieldy, and I don’t even know how I might dispose of it without incurring significant costs — not even accounting for the cost of the sofa, delivery, and a replacement piece of furniture.
On Facebook, there are several groups devoted to Bob’s Discount Furniture’s terrible track record and habit of refusing to honor warranties. Consumers rarely have recourse, and describe months or years trying to resolve issues with dangerous and defective items purchased from Bob’s in many states.
Although the initial few weeks with the sofa were great, I cannot recommend Bob’s Discount Furniture’s Playroom Artisan Sectional, nor would I recommend purchasing any furniture from them if you’re not prepared to absorb the costs of non-functional furniture. The entire situation is frustrating, because this sofa was exactly what I wanted and envisioned — but it’s obvious that the design is defective if the sleeper portion cannot be used as demonstrated.
My advice is to avoid Bob’s Discount Furniture’s Playroom Artisan Sectional, and all sofas from that retailer. As it stands, the sectional is as broken as it was on May 4th, I can’t mop or vacuum around it, and my family has nowhere to sit.
